Heart of Snow
by Jasmine St. James
Summary: Red is the most notorious hunter in the kingdom. Queen Karra orders Red to kill her step daughter, Princess Snow White, and bring back her heart. Snow White gets away and finds refuge in the hideout of a group of outlaws known as the Lost Boys. Meanwhile the queen tells Red if she doesn't bring back Snow's heart, the queen will take hers in its place. Cover art by Victoria Frances.


_**PROLOGUE...**_

Halen's grandmother was ill. She had been ill for a while, but recently she had been so weak she couldn't even get out of bed. On Halen's eleventh birthday she was to visit her grandmother. She sat at the small wooden table in kitchen and watched as her mother packed a basket for her grandmother. Halen's mother was known throughout the kingdom for her treats. She owned a small bakery and was famous for her cakes. Today she made a special cake for Halen's birthday and placed a piece in the basket for her grandmother. She then tucked a bottle of wine into the basket.

"Halen, I want you to bring this basket to your grandmother. Fetch your cloak and shoes."

Halen jumped down from her chair and did as she was told. She slipped on her shoes, then took a moment to admire them. Halen's father died in a war while her mother was pregnant. Her mother never remarried; it had just been the two of them her whole life. Haled preferred it that way. Her mother made enough money at the bakery to take care of them and every winter Halen even got new boots. Most kids didn't get new shoes; even the ones who had fathers who worked hard every day.

Halen had never met her father, but her mother insisted she had her father's eyes. Halen didn't understand how she could have someone else's eyes and if she _could_,how would anyone notice? They were just normal green eyes.

"Make haste, Halen," her mother called from the kitchen. "I want you to set out before it gets too late."

Halen took one more glance at her new boots before standing and removing her hood from the coat rack. For her last birthday, he grandmother gave her a riding hood made of red velvet. Halen loved it so much she wore it every chance she got. It was big on her now, but her grandmother told her she would grow into it when she got older.

Her mother stepped out of the kitchen, gripping the basket. A small piece of cloth was now folded over the top of the basket to keep the contents safe. She knelt down in front of Halen. "Your grandmother will be happy to see you on your birthday. But remember to be polite, Halen. Say 'good morning' promptly when you see her and do not make any comments about her sickly appearance."

"Yes, mother."

Her mother nodded in approval, then handed the basket to Halen. "Listen to me carefully, Halen. Do not stop on your way and do _not_, under any circumstances, stray from the path. I don't want you to get lost or trip and get hurt or break the bottle. Do you understand?"

"Yes, mother. I'll be very careful."

"That's my good girl." Her mother kissed her forehead before reaching out and slipping her hood over her head. "I love you, Halen."

"I love you, too."

And so Halen set off to her grandmother's cottage. As she walked through the marketplace, she had to dodge the bustle of people to avoid getting in the way. A couple of people greeted her as she passed and she offered them a pleasant 'good morning' in return.

Her grandmother lived in the woods a few miles outside of the kingdom. She had taken the trip many times on her own and it no longer scared her the way it had when she was a child. Though, most children didn't venture into the woods. There was only one, narrow path to mark the way, but grass grew over it in some places. The trees were taller than giants, it seemed, and grew so close together that they blocked out the sky completely. It was morning, but the woods were as dark as night. It didn't bother, Halen, however; she walked confidently down the path with her eyes focused ahead of her.

Not long into her journey, Halen heard birds chirping in the tree above her. She looked up to see two cardinals sitting on a branch. The trees were bare now due to winter and the red feathers of the birds stood out vividly among the black branches. Halen knew she should listen to her mother and not stop, but the birds were so beautiful, she had to pause to watch them- just for a moment. Once the cardinals flew away, Halen continued on her way.

In the distance she noticed a single sunbeam shining down from between the trees. It shone brightly on a patch of grass beside the path and that was dusted with snow. Somehow, despite the cold, nosegay flowers were still growing from the grass.

"How unusual," Halen said to herself. "Flowers can't live in snow. These must special; I'll pick a couple for grandmother. They'll make her happy, I know it."

So, even though her mother warned her not to, Halen stepped off the path. She picked each flower she saw until she could no longer carry anymore. She smiled to herself as she thought of the joy the flowers would bring to her grandmother's face. She turned and skipped back to the path.

"No more stops," she told herself. She carried on down the path, careful to keep her eyes straight and not let them wander as they had before with the cardinals and flowers.

When Halen was only a mile from her grandmother's cottage, she heard rustling coming from behind her. She quickened her pace and did not turn to look, telling herself it was only a deer or rabbit. But whatever was in the woods, was moving quickly and coming closer to her. Halen's heart raced and she picked up pace, keeping her head down. What if it was a bear? Halen didn't know what to do if she came across a bear. This filled her with panic.

The rustling continued until the animal came out of the woods. She heard the slight sound of snow crunching beneath its foot. Curiosity got the better of Halen and she glanced behind her. To her surprise it wasn't an animal at all; but a boy about sixteen-years-old. He didn't seem to notice her; he looked frantically around the woods.

Halen stopped and turned around. "Are you lost?" she asked the boy.

Startled, the boy faced her. His eyes grew wide and he looked afraid. It was only then, when she saw his face, that _she _became afraid. She recognized him as Ryan North, the prince from a nearby kingdom. The queen of Halen's kingdom, Queen Karra, had a bounty out for Prince Ryan's head. He had been arrested for poisoning Queen Karra's husband and her step daughter, Snow White, but somehow escaped the castle's dungeon.

Halen gripped the basket tightly and started walking backwards, away from the young prince. "It's you," she whispered. She had meant for her voice to sound demanding and fearless, but it came out only as a whisper.

Prince Ryan held his hands out in front of him. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Halen took another step backwards, prepared to run if she needed to. "You killed the king and the princess."

"No, I didn't." His voice was shaky and he sounded as if he was more scared than Halen. "I didn't kill anyone."

Halen slowly shook her head. "Queen Karra said you did. Her guards are looking for you."

"Can you help me?"

"No. I must go to my grandmother's now. Good bye, Prince Ryan." Halen gave him a small curtsy, then turned and hurried away. She thought she heard him call after her. It sounded like he said, 'Tell no one you saw me', but Halen couldn't be sure. She was moving quickly and he was quite a ways behind her now.

Halen didn't dare stop again. When she saw her grandmother's cottage she breathed a sigh of relief and ran to the door. The big, wooden door was slightly ajar. Halen didn't think anything of this, though. Her grandmother was expecting her, so she must have left to the door open for her since she was too weak to get out of bed.

Halen pushed open the door. "Grandmother? It's Halen." There was no reply. "Maybe she's sleeping…" She slid her hood off her head and looked around. The cottage was dark and smelled wrank. She continued to the back of the cottage. Her grandmother's door was closed and Halen gently knocked on it. "Grandmother?" There was movement on the other side of the door, but no reply. "Grandmother, it's Halen; may I come in?" When there was still no response, Halen slowly opened the door.

It was darker in her grandmother's room than the rest of the house. Halen could hardly see anything. Fortunately, Halen had been to her grandmother's cottage so many times, she knew the layout of the room by heart. To her right was a large wardrobe pressed against the wall, a window with dark brown curtains was on the wall adjacent to the wardrobe, straight in front of her about three feet was her grandmother's bed and beside that was a nightstand with a lamp set on top of it.

Movement in the shadows near the bed caught Halen's attention. She moved towards the window, hoping to open the curtains just a little so she could see her grandmother better. She set the basket and flowers on the floor, then slid open the curtains. No sooner had she done this when she heard a low growl come from behind her. She turned quickly to see a wolf standing at the foot of the bed. It was all black with coarse, matted fur and piercing amber eyes.

It snarled at her, revealing blood on his teeth. Halen suddenly couldn't breathe or move out of fear. Though her brain resisted the urge, her eyes still wandered to the bed. Her grandmother was sprawled out on the sheets, unmoving. Her stomach had been ripped out and there was blood everywhere. Halen wanted to scream and vomit at the same time. The wolf growled again and lunged for her. Halen quickly jumped out of the way and tumbled to the floor. The wolf was on her in a heartbeat. Now Halen screamed.

She managed to roll away from it, but the wolf clawed at her shoulder, ripping the front of her cloak. She sprung to her feet and ran out of the cottage as fast as she could. The wolf stayed close behind her. She could hear its massive paws thumping on the ground and it matched the sound of her heart beating against her chest. The faster she ran, the more her lungs started to burn and the more sore her legs became. She knew she couldn't run much longer and the wolf would soon eat her like it ate her grandmother.

Suddenly a gunshot rang out through the woods and was immediately followed by a yelp. Halen put her hands over her ears at the loud noise and cringed. Her legs could no longer carry her and she collapsed to her knees. Clutching her stomach she heaved into the grass, tears spilling from her eyes. It was only when she was done vomiting that she dared to look towards the wolf. A hunter stood over it now, stabbing it repeatedly. His hands and clothes were covered in splattered blood. Halen gagged at the sight, but she had nothing left to throw up.

The hunter now knelt down on one knee beside the wolf. Prying open the wolf's jaws, he yanked out one of its teeth. He studied it for a moment before closing his fist around it and standing up. Halen slowly stood as well, not taking her eyes off the hunter's closed fist.

"Can I have it?" Halen was shocked when she heard the words flow from her mouth.

The hunter looked at her, almost as surprised as she was. "You want the tooth?"

Halen nodded, but it felt strange; as if she had no control over body. "Yes."

He raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

Halen took in a shaky breath. "The w-wolf killed my grandmother. And it would have killed _me_, if you hadn't…"

The hunter nodded. "I understand." He walked towards her. "Little girls shouldn't be walking in the woods alone if they can't kill what lurks in the shadows."

Halen looked up at him. "I'm only eleven; I can't kill anything."

"Listen, little red riding hood; do you think beasts care if you're eleven?" His tone was mocking. "They will kill you nonetheless."

Halen nervously bit her bottom lip. "How can I learn how to kill?"

The hunter dropped the wolf's tooth into Halen's hand. "I'll teach you."


End file.
